Minor Notes.

"E gli dirò che il verde, il rosso, il biancoGli stanno ben con una spada al fianco.E gli dirò che il bianco, il verde, il rosso,Vuol dir che Italia il duro giogo ha scosso.E gli dirò che il rosso, il bianco, il verdeE un terno che si giuoca e non si perde."

"E gli dirò che il verde, il rosso, il bianco

Gli stanno ben con una spada al fianco.

E gli dirò che il bianco, il verde, il rosso,

Vuol dir che Italia il duro giogo ha scosso.

E gli dirò che il rosso, il bianco, il verde

E un terno che si giuoca e non si perde."

Of which the following rough version may serve to give a sufficiently-accurate idea of the meaning, for the benefit of your "country gentlemen" readers:

"And I'll tell him the green, and the red, and the whiteWould look well by his side as a sword-knot so bright.And I'll tell him the white, and the green, and the redMean, our country has flung the vile yoke from her head.And I'll tell him the red, and the white, and the greenIs the prize that we play for, a prize that we'll win."

"And I'll tell him the green, and the red, and the white

Would look well by his side as a sword-knot so bright.

And I'll tell him the white, and the green, and the red

Mean, our country has flung the vile yoke from her head.

And I'll tell him the red, and the white, and the green

Is the prize that we play for, a prize that we'll win."

"Un terno che si giuoca" is a phrase which refers to the system of the public lotteries,established (so much to their shame) by the Italian governments; and a page of explanation of that system would be needful, to make any literal translation of it intelligible to an English reader.

In conclusion I may say, in reply to the Query ofHenry H. Breen, that the Popes alluded to in the epigram cited by him as above referred to (Vol. vi., p. 603.), seem evidently to have been Julius II. (Rovere), Leo X. (Medici), Clement VII. (Medici), and Paul III. (Farnese). And the epigram in question says no more than the truth, in asserting that they all four occasioned infinite mischief to France.

T. A. T.

Florence.

Perspective.—There is a very common error in drawing walls, the plane of which is parallel to the plane of the picture. An instance of it occurs in the façade of Sennacherib's Palace, Layard's 2nd book on Nineveh, frontispiece. All the horizontal lines in the plane of the picture are drawn parallel. The fact is, that every line above or below the line of the horizon, thoughreallyparallel to it,apparentlyapproaches it, as it is produced to the right or left. The reason is obvious. One point in the wall, viz. that on which you let fall a perpendicular from your eye, is nearest to your eye. The perpendicular height of the wall, as drawn through this point, must therefore appear greater than as drawn through any other point more to the right or left. The lines which are really parallel do therefore apparently converge on some point more or less distant, according to the distance of the wall from your eye. Every drawing in which this principle is not considered must, I think, appear out of perspective.

G. T. Hoare.

Tandridge.

"That."—I lately met with the following grammatical puzzle among some old papers. I forget from what book I copied it many years ago. Perhaps it may be new to some of your readers.

"I'll prove the word that I have made my theme,Is that that may bedoubledwithout blame,And that that that thustrebledI may use,And that that that that critics may abuse,May be correct.—Farther, the Dons to bother,Fivethats may closely follow one another—For, be it known that we may safely writeOr say that that that that that man writ was right;Nay, e'en that that that that that that has followedThroughsixrepeats, the grammar's rule has hallowed,And that that that (thatthatthat that began),Repeatedseventimes is right! Deny't who can."

"I'll prove the word that I have made my theme,

Is that that may bedoubledwithout blame,

And that that that thustrebledI may use,

And that that that that critics may abuse,

May be correct.—Farther, the Dons to bother,

Fivethats may closely follow one another—

For, be it known that we may safely write

Or say that that that that that man writ was right;

Nay, e'en that that that that that that has followed

Throughsixrepeats, the grammar's rule has hallowed,

And that that that (thatthatthat that began),

Repeatedseventimes is right! Deny't who can."

McC.

Corporation Enactments.—In the town books of the Corporation of Youghal, co. Cork, among other singular enactments of that body are two which will now be regarded as curiosities. In the years 1680 and 1703, a cook and a barber received their freedom, on condition that they would respectively dress the mayor's feasts, and shave the Corporation, gratis!

Abhba.

Jacobite Club.—The adherents of the Stuarts are now nearly extinct; but I recollect a few years ago an old gentleman, in London, who was then upwards of eighty years of age, and who was a stanch Jacobite. I have heard him say that, "when he was a young man, his father belonged to a society in Aldersgate Street, called the 'Mourning Bush;' and this Bush was to be always in mourning until the Stuarts were restored." A member of this Society having been met in mourning when one of the reigning family had died, was asked by one of the members how it so happened? His reply was, that he was "not mourning for the dead, but for the living." The old gentleman was father of the Mercers' Company, and his brother of the Stationers' Company: they were bachelors, and citizens of the old school, hospitable, liberal, and charitable. An instance occurred, that the latter had a presentation to Christ's Hospital: he was applied to on behalf of a person who had a large family; but the father not being a freeman, he could not present it to the son. He immediately bought the freedom for the father, and gave the son the presentation! This is a rare act.

The brothers have long gone to receive the reward of their goodness, and lie buried in the cemetery attached to Mercers' Hall, Cheapside.

James Reed.

Sunderland.

Dean Nowell's first Wife.—Churton, in hisLife of Alexander Nowell, dean of St. Paul's, p. 368., is at a loss to know the name of the dean's first wife. He says:

"Of his first wife nothing farther is known but that he was married, either to her or to his second wife, in or before the year 1561. His surviving wife, Eliz. Nowell, had been twice married before, and had children by both her former husbands. Laurence Ball appears to have been her first husband, and Thomas Blount her second."

The pedigree of Bowyer, in theVisitation of Sussex, in 1633-4, gives the name of the dean's first wife:

"ThomasBowyerof London.

Jane, da. and heir ofRobert Merry, sonof Thomas Merryof Hatfield.

Alexander Nowell,dean of St. Paul's.2nd husband."

Y. S.

"Oxoniana."—To your list of desirable reprints, I beg to add the very amusing work under this title, and originally published in four smallvolumes about fifty years since, and now become scarce. Additions and corrections would add to the value and interest of a work which preserves many curious traits of past times and of Oxford Dons.

Alpha.

An Epigram falsely ascribed to George Herbert.—The recent editors of George Herbert have printed as his, among his Latin poems, the last two lines of the 76th epigram of Martial's eighth book:

"Vero verius ergo quid sit, audi:Verum, Gallice, non libenter audis."

"Vero verius ergo quid sit, audi:

Verum, Gallice, non libenter audis."

J. E. B. Mayor.

Ingulph: Bohn's "Antiquarian Library."—Will you kindly allow me to avail myself of your columns to correct an error in my translation of "Ingulph," in Bohn'sAntiquarian Library? In the note to page 2, the Abbey ofBardney,in Lincolnshire, is confounded withPartney,which was one of its cells. The mistake was not observed till, unfortunately, the sheet had been printed; and it was accidentally omitted among theerrata. My authority had, I rather think, been misled by Camden.

Henry T. Riley.

31. St. Peter's Square, Hammersmith.

"Quid levius calamo? Pulvis. Quid pulvere? Ventus.Quid vento? Meretrix. Quid meretrice? Nihil."

"Quid levius calamo? Pulvis. Quid pulvere? Ventus.

Quid vento? Meretrix. Quid meretrice? Nihil."

"What is lighter than a feather?Dust. The wind more light than either.What is lighter than the wind?Airy, fickle, womankind.What than womankind is lighter?Nothing, nothing—but the writer."

"What is lighter than a feather?

Dust. The wind more light than either.

What is lighter than the wind?

Airy, fickle, womankind.

What than womankind is lighter?

Nothing, nothing—but the writer."

X. Y.

"The knights are dust,Their good swords are rust,Their souls are with the saint, we trust."

"The knights are dust,

Their good swords are rust,

Their souls are with the saint, we trust."

C. M. O'Caoimh.

"Circles are prized, not that aboundIn greatness, but the exactly round.Thus men are honoured, who excel,Not in high state, but doing well."

"Circles are prized, not that abound

In greatness, but the exactly round.

Thus men are honoured, who excel,

Not in high state, but doing well."

G. C. H.

"Ill habits gather by unseen degrees,As brooks to rivers, rivers run to seas."

"Ill habits gather by unseen degrees,

As brooks to rivers, rivers run to seas."

"The clanging trumpet sounds to arms,And calls me forth to battle:Our banners float 'midst war's alarms,The signal cannons rattle."

"The clanging trumpet sounds to arms,

And calls me forth to battle:

Our banners float 'midst war's alarms,

The signal cannons rattle."

T. W.

"Of whose omniscient and all-spreading love,Aught to implore were impotence of mind."

"Of whose omniscient and all-spreading love,

Aught to implore were impotence of mind."

"He no longer shall dwellUpon that dirty ball,But to heaven shall come,And make punch for us all."

"He no longer shall dwell

Upon that dirty ball,

But to heaven shall come,

And make punch for us all."

A Septuagenarian.

"Sometimes, indeed, an acre's breadth half green,And half strewed o'er with rubbish, may be seen.When lo! a board, with quadrilateral grace,Stands stiff in the phenomenon of space,Proposing still the neighbourhood's increase,By, 'Ground to let upon a building lease.'"

"Sometimes, indeed, an acre's breadth half green,

And half strewed o'er with rubbish, may be seen.

When lo! a board, with quadrilateral grace,

Stands stiff in the phenomenon of space,

Proposing still the neighbourhood's increase,

By, 'Ground to let upon a building lease.'"

H. W.

"Then what remains, but well our parts to chuse,And keep good humour whatsoe'er we lose."

"Then what remains, but well our parts to chuse,

And keep good humour whatsoe'er we lose."

F. W. J.

"Bachelors of every station,Listen to my true relation."

"Bachelors of every station,

Listen to my true relation."

Also a ballad describing the visit of a countryman and his wife to Oxford. Both of Berkshire origin.

"A fellow feeling makes us wond'rous kind."

W. V.

"Sir John once said a good thing."

Ξανθος.

In your publication (Vol. iv., p. 319.), one of your correspondents has given some interesting particulars relative to Sir Edmund Plowden, New Albion, &c., and expresses the hope that Americans will hereafter do justice to the memory of one really deserving their respect. I am desirous of doing something to vindicate his memory and claims; and to this end should be greatly obliged if your correspondent would favour me with some additional facts. To get at these, I will put some of them in the interrogative form.

When and where was Sir Edmund born?

What is the evidence that he was in America from 1620 to 1630? If so, where (in what localities), and what capacity?

He says that his sister married a son of Secretary Lake,thenin office; but Lake was turned out several years before 1630, and Lord Baltimore took his place, I think. Nor was Wentworth made Earl of Strafford till after the time of the petition.

He is said to have served five years in Ireland: in what capacity?

Who were Viscount Musherry, Lord Monson, Sir Thomas Denby, (Claiborne I know of), Capt. Balls; besides Sir John Laurence, Sir BowyerWorstley, Barrett, &c.? Where did these parties "die, in America," in 1634?

Is theLatinoriginal of the character in existence? There is an omission in the bounds given in the paper referred to: can I get an extract from the original entry of limits?

Did the charter ever pass theGreat Seal?

Would it be valid, if only passed under the private seal?

Can the date of the grant to Danby be ascertained?

Are there any memoranda of Plowden's six years' residence as Governor of New Albion (I have some of his residence in Virginia)?

Can I get more definite facts about the misconduct of Francis?

The license for alienation, &c. is stated to have been obtained 15th of Charles, 1646; but the 15th of Charles was 1640. When did he arrive to attend to his property, and when was he imprisoned in the Fleet?

Who was Beauchamp Plantagenet, the author of the tract onNew Albion, published in 1648?

Who were Robert Evelin, Captain Young, and Master Miles, mentioned in that tract?

Can you give me any additional facts,datesespecially, of events and births, deaths, &c.?

I know not into whose hands these Queries will come; but I can say that, if they are answered, the cause of historic truth and justice will be served; and I shall have the aid I want towards correcting the misrepresentations and errors that have been accumulating for years on this point.

S. F. Streeter, Sec. Md. Hist. Soc.

Baltimore Md., March 2, 1854.

P. S.—I should like to inquire, through your publication, if any one can give me the family of Mr. Claiborne; and any facts in his history not stated in our works?

As a portion of the history of the magnificent clock, which came into my possession last year, is connected with Holland, I think it probable that I may, through the means of "N. & Q." and theNavorscher, be able to obtain the information respecting it which I desire. I shall therefore be very much obliged if you will give this communication a place.

It will be necessary to give a brief description of the clock, so as to enable parties on the other side of the water to recognise and identify it. The clock, which is of copper richly gilt, and elaborately engraved, stands about four feet high, independent of the pedestal. It is of architectural design, and is divided into three stories, having detached columns at each corner. The two lower stories contain the dials in the front. The upper story exhibits the groups of moving silver figures, which strike the quarters, hours, and move in procession whilst a tune is played by a chime of bells. The whole is surmounted by a dome, on which is placed a silver cock, which flaps his wings and crows when the clock strikes. It was made by Isaac Hahrecht (the artist who made the great clock in the cathedral at Strasburg), according to the inscription on it, in the year 1589: and is evidently a model of that celebrated work condensed into a single tower, since it performs all the feats of that clock. Its reputed history, as given in a printed account of it, is, that it was made for Pope Sixtus V., and was for more than two hundred years in the possession of the Court of Rome. It afterwards came into the possession of William I., King of the Netherlands, who authorised Odevaere the antiquary, now deceased, to investigate everything concerning it, and to give a description of it. What I should wish to know is, who was this Odevaere, and where is his description of it to be found? With regard to the history of the clock, I should wish to know the authority for the statement of its having been made for the Pope, when and how it came to leave the Vatican; how it became the property of the King of Holland; when and why it ceased to belong to the crown of Holland; and under what circumstances it came over to this country, where it was exhibited in 1850?

If any of the readers of "N. & Q.," or theNavorscher, can give me any information respecting it, I shall feel greatly obliged.

Octavius Morgan.

9. Pall Mall.

Spielberg, when built?—When and by whom was the prison of Spielberg, in Moravia, built? Has it been used exclusively as a state prison?

M. J. S.

"Ded. Pavli."—Can you give me any information respecting a tract entitled—

"Ded. Pavli Antiquarius, Theologia, et contra Perciocas Thologo Rvmætatis nostræ scholas Philippi Melanchthonis declamativncvla. Et quædam alia lectv dignissima."

F. Coleman.

16. Great St. Helens.

Mantelpiece: Mantelshelf: Mantelboard: Mantell and Brace.—What is the origin of this word, and whence came the thing? It must originally have had a use and a meaning, before it became a haven of rest for hyacinth-glasses, china monsters, Bohemian glass vases, and a thousand nick-nacks and odds and ends of drawing-roomfurniture, as itnowis with us. It had, no doubt, some real work to do before it became what we are pleased to termornamental.

C. D. Lamont.

Greenock.

Passage in Job.—TheRev. Moses Margoliouthwill much oblige the writer, and some of his friends, by giving in "N. & Q." a literal translation of Job xix. 26. The authorised version is:

"And though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh I shall see God."

The marginal reference gives:

"After I shall awake, though this body be destroyed, yet out of my flesh shall I see God."

C. Mansfield Ingleby.

Birmingham.

Provincial Glossaries.—In an article in the 79th volume of theEdinburgh Review, on the provincialisms of the European languages, the writer says:

"There are some very copious early English vocabularies lying in manuscript in the Cathedral libraries of Durham, Winchester, and Canterbury; in the British Museum, King's College, and other depositories, deserving collection."

Will any of your learned readers inform me of the dates of the MSS. referred to, and by whom the collections were made? I would recommend them to the notice of the Camden Society.

Fra. Mewburn.

Chadderton of Nuthurst, co. Lancaster.—What crest did this family bear, and when did the family become extinct?

J. B.

A marvellous Combat of Birds.—In thePhœnix Britannicus, by J. Morgan, London, 4to., p. 250.[2], there is an account of—

"The wonderful battle of stares (or starlings), fought at Cork on Saturday 12th, and Monday 14th, October, 1621."

And this narration relates, that on the Sunday, October 13, the intervening day, the starlings absented themselves to fight at Woolwich, in Kent!!

Without vouching for the fact, or calling in question the prowess of this "Irish Brigade," I leave it to be confirmed or refuted by any reader of the "N. & Q."—comme bon lui semblera.

Σ.

P. S.—I would,à proposto the above subject, thank any reader of your miscellany to point out to me a work by a M. Hanhart (I believe is the name), which I think is uponLes Mœurs des Fourmis indigènes, in which are given some particulars of regular conflicts between ants. I am not aware of the exact title of the book, but I have seen an account of it in some Edinburgh periodical, if I am not mistaken.

Footnote 2:(return)At p. 252. of the same article is an account of the battle of the gnats, noticed byMr. E. W. Jacob.—Ed.

At p. 252. of the same article is an account of the battle of the gnats, noticed byMr. E. W. Jacob.—Ed.

Battle of the Gnats.—In reading Stowe'sChronicles of England, I hit upon the following passage recorded in the reign of King Richard II., p. 509.:

"A fighting among gnats at the King's Maner ofShine, where they were so thicke gathered, that the ayre was darkned with them: they fought and made a great battaile. Two partes of them being slayne, fel downe to the grounde; the thirde parte hauing got the victorie, flew away, no man knew whither. The number of the deade was such that might be swepte uppe with besomes, and bushels filled weyth them."

This is a curious incident, and I have never heard of anything of the sort taking place in modern times. Would some of your readers who study natural history be good enough to give me another instance? I am at present inclined to think that the account is one of the many myths which Stow doubtless believed.

Eustace W. Jacob.

Sandford of Thorpe Salvine, Co. York.—Wanted, the arms and crest of the Sandfords of Thorpe Salvine. Also any particulars of the family, from the commencement of their residence at High Ashes, in the parish of Ashton-under-Lyne, co. Lancashire, until the termination of that residence. Were they of the same family with Sandford, Baron Mount Sandford?

J. B.

"Outlines of the History of Theology," 8vo., London, 1844, said to be privately printed. Any information as to the author, &c. will oblige

John Martin.

Woburn Abbey.

"Mawkin."—Is this word, which signifies here "a scarecrow," merely a Norfolk pronunciation ofmocking? i. e. an imitation of a man—composed of coat, hat, &c. hung upon a cross bar of wood?

J. L. S.

"Plain Dealer."—Can any one of your readers inform me where I can see a copy of Aaron Hill'sPlain Dealer, as originally published, and before it was collected and printed in two volumes?

Hymn attributed to Handel.—Can any of your readers give information concerning a hymn which commences thus:

"We'll proclaim the wond'rous storyOf the mercies we receive,From the day-spring's dawn in glory,To the fading hour of eve."

"We'll proclaim the wond'rous story

Of the mercies we receive,

From the day-spring's dawn in glory,

To the fading hour of eve."

It has been attributed to Handel. On what authority?

W. P. Storer.

Olney, Bucks.

Degrees in Arts.—In the diploma of Master of Arts which I obtained from the University of Edinburgh, occur the words:

"Cunctaque consecutum esse Privilegia, Immunitates, Jura, quæ hic aut usquam alibi Bonarum Artium Magistris concedi solent."

What are (or ratherwere, for I suppose they do not now exist) theseprivilegia,immunitates, andjura?

Annandale.

"Goloshes"—"Kutchin-kutchu."—What is the origin ofgoloshes, as the name of water-proof shoes? It is, of course, of American derivation. But has it any connexion with the tribe of North American Indians, the Goloshes? They are the immediate neighbours of those tribes of Esquimaux who form water-proof boats and dresses from the entrails of the seal; and a confusion of names may easily have occurred.

The expedition of Sir John Richardson to the Arctic shores, which suggests the above Query, also gives rise to another. Did any of your readers ever amuse themselves, as children, by performing the dance known askutchin kutchu-ing; which consists in jumping about with the legs bent in a sitting posture? If so, have they not been struck with a philological mania, on seeing his picture of the Kutchin-Kutcha Indians dancing; in which the principal performer is actually figuring in the midst of the wild circle in the way described. Is not the nursery term something more than a mere coincidence?

Seleucus.

Cornwalls of London.—Perhaps some reader of "N. & Q." may be able to inform me what were the arms, crest, and motto of the Cornwalls of London? One of the family, John Cornwall, was a Director of the Bank of England in 1769.

F. C.

Beverley.

Flasks for Wine-bottles.—When, and under what circumstances, did the common use of flasks in this country, for holding wine, go out? Hogarth died in 1764, and in none of his pictures, I believe, is the wine-bottle, in its present shape, to be seen. On the other hand, I have never found any person able to remember the use of flasks, or indeed any other than the wine-bottle in its present shape. The change must have been rapidly effected between 1760 and 1790. Of course I am aware that certain wines, Greek, I believe, are still imported in flasks.

Henry T. Riley.

Froxhalmi, Prolectricus, Phytacus, Tuleus, Candos, Gracianus, and Tounu or Tonnu.—Can any of your correspondents suggest the meaning of these words, or either them? They are not in the recent Paris edition of Ducange.

Henry T. Riley.

Postmaster at Merton College.—Can you tell me whether there is any known derivation for the term "Postmaster," as applied to part of the members on the Foundation of Merton College, Oxford? Also, What connexion there is between this word and the Latin for it, which is seen on the college plate, in the words "In usum Portionistarum?"

J. G. T.

Ch. Ch.

[It seems probable that these postmasters formerly occupied one of the postern gates of the college. Hence we find Anthony à Wood, in his Life, August 1, 1635, says, "A fine of 30li.was set by the warden and fellowes of Merton College. When his father renewed his lease of the old stone-house, wherein his son A. Wood was borne (called antiently Portionists' or Postmasters' Hall), for forty yeares," &c. Again, April 13, 1664: "A meeting of the warden and fellowes of Merton College, where the renewing of the leases belonging to the family, concerning the housing (Portionists' Hall and its appurtenances) against Merton College, was by them proposed." Fuller, in hisChurch Hist., bookIII. cent. xiii. sect. 8., has given the origin of postmasters. "There is," says he, "a by-foundation in Merton College, a kind of college in the college, and this tradition goeth of their original:—Anciently there was, over against Merton College, a small unendowed hall, whose scholars had so run in arrears, that their opposite neighbours, out of charity, took them into their college (then but nine in number) to wait on the fellows. But since, they are freed from any attendance, and endowed with plentiful maintenance.... Bishop Jewel was a postmaster, before removed hence to be fellow of Corpus Christi." Consult also Oxoniana, vol. ii. pp. 15-22. ThePortionistæ, or Postmasters, did not reside in the college till the latter end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth, but in a hall opposite to it, which had been provided for the use of the college by Peter de Habinton, or Habendon, the first warden. It afterwards became the property of the father of Anthony à Wood, and beneath its roof that distinguished antiquary was born, December 17, 1632. The second brother of Anthony became one of the postmasters of Merton College.]

"Lyra Apostolica."—Can you inform me who were the writers in theLyra Apostolicawho assumed the lettersα,β,γ,δ,ε,ζ?

Tyro.

[We have heard the initials attributed to the following writers:—α, Bowden;β, R. H. Froude;γ, John Keble;δ, J. H. Newman;ε, Isaac Williams;ζ, Wilberforce.]

East Dereham Manor.—Is it true that "the manor of East Dereham of the Queen" was wrested from the See of Ely by Queen Elizabeth's celebrated threat of "unfrocking?"

S. Z. Z. S.

[The memorable unique epistle from the maiden Majesty of England only deprived Dr. Cox, at that time, of his town-house and fair gardens, called ElyPlace, on Holborn Hill, reserving to himself and his successors free access, through the gate-house, of walking in the garden, and leave to gather twenty bushels of roses yearly therein! During the life of Dr. Cox an attempt was made by Elizabeth on some of the best manors belonging to the See of Ely; but it was not till that of his successor, Dr. Martin Heton, that Dereham Grange, with other manors, were alienated to the Crown. See Dugdale'sMonasticon, vol. i. p. 466.]

Quakers executed in North America.—Were there not several Quakers hanged in North America on account of their religious opinions? And can you inform me where an account of the circumstances attending this persecution (if there ever was such an one) can be found?

Alfred Conder.

[Three Quakers were executed at Boston in 1659, viz. William Robinson, merchant of London; Marmaduke Stevenson of Yorkshire; and Mary Dyar. An account of the cruelties inflicted upon them is given in Sewell'sHistory of the Quakers, edit. 1725, pp. 219-227.; also in a pamphlet entitledA Declaration of the sad and great Persecution and Martyrdom of the People of God, called Quakers, in New England, for the Worshipping of God: London, printed for Robert Wilson, in Martin's-le-Grand, 1661. It will be found among the King's Pamphlets in the British Museum.]

Inscription in Fulham Church.—I should esteem it a favour if any one of your numerous correspondents would furnish me with a correct copy of the inscription to the memory of the son of Colonel Wm. Carlos, who so nobly defended Charles II. at the battle of Worcester.

J. B. Whitborne.

["Here lieth William Carlos of Stafford, who departed this life, in the twenty-fifth yeare of his age, the 19th day of May, 1668.'Tis not bare names that noble fathers giveTo worthy sonnes: though dead, in them they live;For in his progeny, 'tis Heaven's decree,Man only can on earth immortall bee;But Heaven gives soules whgrace doth sometymes bendEarly to God their rice and Soveraigne end.Thus, whilst that earth, concern'd, did hope to seeThy noble father living still in thee,Careless of earth, to heaven thou didst aspire,And we on earth, Carlos in thee desire."Arms: an oak on a fesse, three regal crowns.]

["Here lieth William Carlos of Stafford, who departed this life, in the twenty-fifth yeare of his age, the 19th day of May, 1668.

'Tis not bare names that noble fathers giveTo worthy sonnes: though dead, in them they live;For in his progeny, 'tis Heaven's decree,Man only can on earth immortall bee;But Heaven gives soules whgrace doth sometymes bendEarly to God their rice and Soveraigne end.Thus, whilst that earth, concern'd, did hope to seeThy noble father living still in thee,Careless of earth, to heaven thou didst aspire,And we on earth, Carlos in thee desire."

'Tis not bare names that noble fathers give

To worthy sonnes: though dead, in them they live;

For in his progeny, 'tis Heaven's decree,

Man only can on earth immortall bee;

But Heaven gives soules whgrace doth sometymes bend

Early to God their rice and Soveraigne end.

Thus, whilst that earth, concern'd, did hope to see

Thy noble father living still in thee,

Careless of earth, to heaven thou didst aspire,

And we on earth, Carlos in thee desire."

Arms: an oak on a fesse, three regal crowns.]

Hero of the "Spanish Lady's Love."—Was Sir John Bolle, of Thorpe Hall, near Louth, the hero of theSpanish Lady's Love? The Bolle pedigree is in Illingworth'sHistory of Scampton.

S. Z. Z. S.

[According to Ormerod'sCheshire, vol. iii. p. 333., Sir Urian Legh, of Adlington, disputes the fact of being the hero of that romantic affair. "Sir Urian Legh was knighted by the Earl of Essex at the siege of Cadiz, and during that expedition is traditionally said to have been engaged in an adventure which gave rise to the well-known ballad of 'The Spanish Lady's Love.' A fine original portrait of Sir Urian, in a Spanish dress, is preserved at Bramall, which has been copied for the family at Adlington." So that between these two chivalrous knights it is difficult to decide which is the famed gallant. From the care exercised by Mr. Illingworth in collecting all the anecdotes and notices of the Bolle family, the presumptive evidence seems to favour his hero.]

"Bothy."—In the March Number ofBlackwood's Magazine, 1854, the word "bothy" is frequently used in an article called "News from the Farm." Will some one of your numerous correspondents give me a little account of "the bothy system?"

F. M. Middleton.

[A bothy is a cottage or hut where labouring servants are lodged, and is sometimes built of wood, as we read in theJacobite Relics, ii. 189.:"Fare thee well, my native cot,Bothyof the birken tree!Sair the heart, and hard the lot,O' the lad that parts wi' thee."Bothies, or detached houses, in which the unmarried farm-servants sleep and prepare their victuals, and of which there is a considerable number in Perthshire, though convenient and beneficial in some respects, have not, certainly, contributed to the formation of virtuous habits. These servants are often migratory, removing frequently at the expiration of the year, according as humour or caprice may dictate, and, like birds of passage, taking their departure to other lands.]

[A bothy is a cottage or hut where labouring servants are lodged, and is sometimes built of wood, as we read in theJacobite Relics, ii. 189.:

"Fare thee well, my native cot,Bothyof the birken tree!Sair the heart, and hard the lot,O' the lad that parts wi' thee."

"Fare thee well, my native cot,

Bothyof the birken tree!

Sair the heart, and hard the lot,

O' the lad that parts wi' thee."

Bothies, or detached houses, in which the unmarried farm-servants sleep and prepare their victuals, and of which there is a considerable number in Perthshire, though convenient and beneficial in some respects, have not, certainly, contributed to the formation of virtuous habits. These servants are often migratory, removing frequently at the expiration of the year, according as humour or caprice may dictate, and, like birds of passage, taking their departure to other lands.]

"Children in the Wood."—Was Weyland Wood in Norfolk the scene of the "Children in the Wood?"

S. Z. Z. S.

[The following account of this tradition is given inBeauties of England and Wales, vol. xi. p. 269., Norfolk:—"Near the town of Watton is Weyland Wood, vulgarly calledWailingWood, from a tradition that two infants were basely murdered in it by their uncle; and which furnished the story of a beautifully pathetic and well-known ancient ballad, entitled "The Children in the Wood, or the Norfolk Gentleman's Last Will and Testament," preserved in Percy'sReliques.]

(Vol. ix., pp. 138. 255.)

In reply to H. R.NÉEF., I beg to state that the writer of the remarks alluded to, on Brydone'sTour in Sicily and Malta, was the Rev. Robert Finch, M.A., formerly of Balliol College in this University, and who died about the year 1830. When I met with Mr. Finch's honest and somewhat blunt expression of opinion, recorded in acopy which once belonged to him, of Brydone'sTour, I was quite ignorant of the hostile criticisms that had appeared at different times on that once popular work; but knowing Mr. Finch's high character for scholarship, and a knowledge of Italy, I thought his remark worth sending to a publication intended, like "N. & Q.," as "A Medium of Intercommunication for Literary Men, Antiquaries," &c., who are well able to examine a Note of the kind; and either to accept it as valid, or to reject it as untenable. On referring now to some standard works, in order to discover the opinions of learned men respecting Mr. Brydone'sTour, the first work I looked into was theBiographie Universelle(in eighty-three volumes, and not yet completed, Paris, 1811-1853), in vol. lix. of which the following observations occur, under the name ofBrydone(Patrice):

"On lui a reproché d'avoir sacrifié la vérité au plaisir de raconter des choses piquantes. On l'avait accusé aussi d'avoir, par son indiscretion, suscité à l'Abbé Recupero, Chanoine de Catane, une persécution de la part de son évêque. Cette indiscretion n'eut pas heureusement un résultat aussi facheux; mais ses erreurs sur plusieurs points sont évidentes; il donne 4000 toises de hauteur à l'Etna qui n'en a que 1662; il commet d'autres fautes qui ont été relevées par les voyageurs venus après lui. Bartels (Briefe über Kalabrien und Sicilien, 2te Auflage, 3 Bd., 8vo., Götting. 1791-92) est même persuadé que le voyage au sommet de l'Etna, chef-d'œuvre de narration, n'est qu'un roman, et cet avis est partagé par d'autres."

Göthe says (Werke, Band xxviii. pp. 189, 190.: Stuttgart, 1830) that when he inquired at Catania respecting the best method of ascending Mount Etna, Chevalier Gioeni, the professor of natural history there, gave him the following advice and information:

"Als wir den Ritter um die Mittel befragten wie man sich benehmen müsse um den Aetna zu besteigen, wollte er von einer Wagniss nach dem Gipfel, besonders in der gegenwärtigen Jahreszeit gar nichts hören. Ueberhaupt, sagte er, nachdem er uns um Verzeihung gebeten, die hier ankommenden Fremden sehen die Sache für allzuleicht an; wir andern Nachbarn des Berges sind schon zufrieden, wenn wir ein paarmal in unserm Leben die beste Gelegenheit abgepasst und den Gipfel erreicht haben. Brydone, der zuerst durch seine Beschreibung die Lust nach diesem Feuergipfel entzündet, ist gar nicht hinauf gekommen."

From these quotations it is evident, that Mr. Finch was not singular in the belief he entertained; and certainly the scepticism of men so eminent as Professor Gioeni, Dr. Barthels, and Messrs. Eyriès and Parisot (the French writers whose names are attached to the Memoir in theBiog. Univ.), must be grounded on reasons deserving of attention. An ordinary reader of Brydone would accept the account of his ascent with implicit confidence; but when veteran professors, scientific men, and experienced travellers and scholars refuse to believe that he reached the summit of Etna, the most probable mode of accounting for their incredulity is, perhaps to suppose, that in their opinion he had mistaken some other part of the mountain for the real summit. Not having met with any detail of their reasons for disbelief, I am only able to state their bare assertion. In my opinion, the beautifully glowing and poetical description of the magic scene beheld by Brydone from the mountain—a description, the perusal of which, in youth, remains for ever after imprinted on the memory, like a passage from Addison or Gibbon, could only have been written by an actual spectator.

John Macray.

Oxford.

(Vol. ix., p. 87.)

I have known "The Red Cow," at the top of Granham Hill, near Marlborough, for fifty years, but do not recollect ever to have heard of any particular origin for the sign.

The old carriages at Manton were built about a century and a half ago, perhaps not so much, for one of the Baskerville family, on the occasion of his being sheriff of the county to which he belonged, probably Wilts or Hereford. There are two of them: one a square coach, and the other a very high phaeton. The Baskerville arms—Ar. a chevron gu. between three hurts, impaling, quarterly, one and four, or, a cross moline az, two and three, gu. a chevron ar. between three mallets or—are painted on the panels. As I have no ordinary of arms at hand, I cannot ascribe this impalement; but will trust to some more learned herald among your correspondents to determine who the lady was? When her name, perhaps Moleyns or Molyneaux, is ascertained, reference to a Baskerville pedigree would probably determine the husband, and the precise date of the carriages, which could not have belonged to the Protector.

O. Cromwell's arms were, Sable, a lion rampant ar. There were also two families styled WilliamsaliasCromwell: one of which bore, Gu. three cheverons ar. between as many lions rampant or; the other, Sa. a lion rampant ar., the same as Oliver's coat, and probably derived by him from the Williams family.

I have wandered from "The Red Cow," but I will not omit to hazard an idea for the consideration ofGlywysydd. Marlborough has changed its armorial bearings several times; but the present coat, containing a white bull, was granted by Harvey, Clarenceux inA.D.1565. Cromwell was attached to Cowbridge and its cow by familydescent; so he was to Marlborough by congeniality of sentiment with the burghers. Query, Whether, in affection to the latter, he granted to the town a new coat, some such as the following: Gules, a bull passant argent, armed or, impaling a cow passant regardant gules: and so might originate "The Red Cow" upon Granham Hill. History is entirely silent upon this point; but if such a combination were ever given to Marlborough, it is quite certain that Harvey's grant was resumed at the Restoration. I have quite forgotten to remark, that there is a suburb at Marlborough called Cowbridge—a fact which seems to strengthen my hypothesis.

A cow may be borne by some name, but at present I only recollect that of Vach: to which is accorded, Ar. three cows' heads erased sable. Bulls and oxen occur frequently; as in Fitz-Geffrey, Cowley, Bull, Oxley, Oxcliffe, Oxendon, &c. Bulls' heads belong to the families of Bullock, Hillesdon, Fleming, Barbor, Frend, Gornay, Bullman, and Williams, a baronet, &c.

Patonce.

(Vol. viii., p. 172.)

As no answer to the Query on "Fox-hunting" has yet appeared in "N. & Q.," I venture to send the following extracts from an article in theQuarterly Review, March 1832, on "The Management of Hounds and Horses," by Nimrod. It appears that "the first public notice of fox-hunting" occurs in the reign of Richard II., who gave permission to the Abbot of Peterborough to hunt the fox:

"In Twice'sTreatise on the Craft of Hunting, Reynard is thus classed:'And for to sette young hunterys in the wayTo venery, I cast me fyrst to go;Of which four bestes be, that is to say,The Hare, the Herte, the Wulf, and the wild Boar:But there ben other bestes, five of the chase,The Buck the first, the seconde is the Do;TheFoxthe third, which hath hard grace,The ferthe the Martyn, and the last the Roe.'"It is indeed quite apparent, that until at most a hundred and fifty years ago, the fox was considered as an inferior animal of the chase; the stag, buck, and even hare, ranking before him. Previously to that period, he was generally taken in nets or hays, set on the outside of his earth: when hewashunted, it was among rocks and crags, or woods inaccessible to horseman: such a scene in short, or nearly so, as we have drawn to the life in Dandie Dinmont's primitivechasseinGuy Mannering. It is difficult to determine when the first regularly appointed pack of hounds appeared among us. Dan Chaucer gives the thing inembryo:'Aha, the fox! and after him they ran;And eke with staves many another man.Ran Coll our dogge, and Talbot, and Gerlond,And Malkin with her distaff in her hond.Ran cow and calf, and eke the very hogges,So fered were for the barking of the dogges,And shouting of the men and women eke,They ronnen so, hem thought her hertes brake.'"At the next stage, no doubt, neighbouring farmers kept one or two hounds each; and, on stated days, met for the purpose of destroying a fox that had been doing damage to their poultry yards. By and bye, a few couple of strong hounds seem to have been kept by the small country esquires or yeomen who could afford the expense, and they joined packs. Such were calledtrencherhounds, implying that they ran loose about the house, and were not confined in kennel."

"In Twice'sTreatise on the Craft of Hunting, Reynard is thus classed:

'And for to sette young hunterys in the wayTo venery, I cast me fyrst to go;Of which four bestes be, that is to say,The Hare, the Herte, the Wulf, and the wild Boar:But there ben other bestes, five of the chase,The Buck the first, the seconde is the Do;TheFoxthe third, which hath hard grace,The ferthe the Martyn, and the last the Roe.'

'And for to sette young hunterys in the way

To venery, I cast me fyrst to go;

Of which four bestes be, that is to say,

The Hare, the Herte, the Wulf, and the wild Boar:

But there ben other bestes, five of the chase,

The Buck the first, the seconde is the Do;

TheFoxthe third, which hath hard grace,

The ferthe the Martyn, and the last the Roe.'

"It is indeed quite apparent, that until at most a hundred and fifty years ago, the fox was considered as an inferior animal of the chase; the stag, buck, and even hare, ranking before him. Previously to that period, he was generally taken in nets or hays, set on the outside of his earth: when hewashunted, it was among rocks and crags, or woods inaccessible to horseman: such a scene in short, or nearly so, as we have drawn to the life in Dandie Dinmont's primitivechasseinGuy Mannering. It is difficult to determine when the first regularly appointed pack of hounds appeared among us. Dan Chaucer gives the thing inembryo:

'Aha, the fox! and after him they ran;And eke with staves many another man.Ran Coll our dogge, and Talbot, and Gerlond,And Malkin with her distaff in her hond.Ran cow and calf, and eke the very hogges,So fered were for the barking of the dogges,And shouting of the men and women eke,They ronnen so, hem thought her hertes brake.'

'Aha, the fox! and after him they ran;

And eke with staves many another man.

Ran Coll our dogge, and Talbot, and Gerlond,

And Malkin with her distaff in her hond.

Ran cow and calf, and eke the very hogges,

So fered were for the barking of the dogges,

And shouting of the men and women eke,

They ronnen so, hem thought her hertes brake.'

"At the next stage, no doubt, neighbouring farmers kept one or two hounds each; and, on stated days, met for the purpose of destroying a fox that had been doing damage to their poultry yards. By and bye, a few couple of strong hounds seem to have been kept by the small country esquires or yeomen who could afford the expense, and they joined packs. Such were calledtrencherhounds, implying that they ran loose about the house, and were not confined in kennel."

These are but short extracts, but they comprise the whole of what is said on the first origin of fox-hunting. The rest of the article treats of the quality and breed of horses and hounds.

Frederick M. Middleton.

(Vol. viii., pp. 50. 535.)

St. Vincent's Day, Jan. 22.—In Brand'sPopular Antiquities, Bohn's edition, vol. i. p. 38., is to be found the following notice of this day:

"Mr. Douce's manuscript notes say: 'Vincenti festo si Sol radiet, memor esto;' thus Englished by Abraham Fleming:'Remember on St Vincent's Day,If that the Sun his beams display.'"[Dr. Foster is at a loss to account for the origin of this command, &c.]"

"Mr. Douce's manuscript notes say: 'Vincenti festo si Sol radiet, memor esto;' thus Englished by Abraham Fleming:

'Remember on St Vincent's Day,If that the Sun his beams display.'

'Remember on St Vincent's Day,

If that the Sun his beams display.'

"[Dr. Foster is at a loss to account for the origin of this command, &c.]"

It is probable that the concluding part of the precept has been lost; but a curious old manuscript, which fell into my hands some years since, seems to supply the deficiency. The manuscript in question is a sort of household book, kept by a family of small landed proprietors in the island of Guernsey between the years 1505 and 1569. It contains memoranda, copies of wills, settlements of accounts, recipes, scraps of songs and parts of hymns and prayers; some Romanist, some Anglican, some of the Reformed Church in France. Among the scraps of poetry I find the following rhymes on St. Vincent's Day; the first three lines of which are evidently a translation of the Latin verse above quoted, the last containing the to be remembered:

Back to Index Next